On September 29, 2010, AB 354 made it a requiement that students entering 7th-12th grades in public and private schools receive a Tdap booster. The law requires:

This coming school year (2011-2012), all students entering into 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th or 12th grades will need proof of an adolescent whooping cough booster shot (called “Tdap”) before starting school.

For the next school year (2012-13) and future school years, all students entering into 7th grade only will need proof of a "Tdap" shot to start school.

Pertussis—Whooping Cough—is very serious in infants: Infants under 3 months of age are particularly at risk from pertussis infection. Vaccinating their caregivers and household members helps protect them. To learn more about whooping cough, see the CDPH website: http://www.cdph.ca.gov/HealthInfo/discond/Pages/Pertussis.aspx.

Contact your health care provider to find out if your child needs the "Tdap" vaccine. If you do not have a regular provider, the vaccine is offered through the Immunization Program at the City of Berkeley Public Health Clinic.

In addition to providing select immunizations for children and adults, this program offers information about other immunization and vaccination programs available to the community.